Machine for producing hexagonal mesh wire fabric



Nov. 10, 1936.

c. w. HOLMQU'ZIST MACHINE FOR PRODUCING HEXAGONRL MESfi WIRE FABRICFiled Aug. 5, 1935 3 Sheets-Sheet l 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 C. W, HOLMQUISTFiled Aug. 5, 1935 MACHINE FOR PRODUCING HEXAGONAL MESH WIRE' FABRICNov. 10, 1936.

Ndv. I0, 1936. c, w. HOLMQUIST 2,060,418

MACHINE FOR PRODUCING HEXAGONAL MESH WIRE FABRIC Filed Aug. 5, 1935 3Sheets-Sheet 3 1 Patented Nov. it), 1936 UNITED STATES means PATENTOFFICE MACHINE FOR PRODUCING HEXAGONAL MESH WIRE FABRIC 14 Claims.

This invention relates to machines for making wire fabric, and has to doparticularly with the manufatcure of wire fabric of substantiallyhexagon design such as used for fences and for other purposes.

An object of my invention is to improve the operation of machinery ofthis type by so relating the functioning parts that the twisting of themesh wires proceeds smoothly and the breakage of the mesh wires, whetherdue to excessive ten sion or to other incidental operation of themachine, is reduced to a minimum.

Other objects will become apparent in the course of the ensuingdescription and will be more particularly pointed out in the appendedclaims.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate my invention,

Figures 1 and 1a together show an illustrative embodiment of such amachine in front elevation, the central portion being broken away;

Figure 2 is a view principally in cross-section of the machine, thedrive being shown in elevation;

Figiu'e 3 is a view in elevation of a detail;

Figure 4 is a sectional view considerably enlarged of a fragmentarydetail of Figure 2; and

Figure 5 isa fragmentary view in elevation of a twister bar, withportions broken away.

In the fabrication of wire fabric of the type above referred to,adjacent mesh wires are twisted together to form hexagonal mesh. Thereis insufficient stretch in the wire generally employed to provide forthe twist; and as the fabrication of the mesh proceeds, there is a creepof the wires into the machine to provide enough wire for the twist. Thecreeping of the wires past the operating parts of the machine has provedtroublesome, not only because of the incidental wear on these operatingparts, but also because of the frequent breakage of the wires, whichresults from the excessive tension thus placed upon the wires.

In accordance with my invention I avoid such excessive tension both bypushing the mesh wires into the machine so far that the portions of thewires intermediate the twisters are formed into loops to provide slackbetween the twisting devices, and by feeding the mesh wires into themachine frictionally.

A preferred device for frictionally feeding the mesh wires is thecapstan shown in the accompanying drawings. This capstan, as shownparticularly in Figure 2, receives the wires which pass into the machinebeneath a guide roll 1.

The capstan itself includes a roll 8 which is preferably grooved to keepthe wires in alinement. Each wire is given at least one turn about theroll 8. The latter is mounted on a shaft 9 and is driven at a somewhatfaster peripheral speed than the travel of the wires by intermeshinggears l0 and I l. The gear H is, in turn, driven through a coaxialsprocket I 3 by the chain l 2 which is passed also over a sprocket [6 onthe main shaft 14 which carries the main drum l5 of the machine.

The capstan and the main drum are, accordingly, synchronized; but thereis, to some extent, slippage of the wires on the drum 8 incidental tothe frictional drive of the wires. In other words, if the wires arequite loose on the capstan there is so much slippage on the roll 8 thatthe feed of wire drops behind the requirements of the main drum [5. Thisresults in greater tension on the wires passing from the capstan to themain drum, thus tightening up the turns or bights of the wires aroundthe roll 8, so that there is less slippage on this roll; and the feedautomatically catches up to the rate required by the drum E5. Thecapstan, accordingly, functions automatically to feed the wires to thedrum IS without much tension, and yet the feed is so dependent upon thespeed of rotation of the drum l5 that there is no troublesome slack tobecome entangled in the machine.

The drum l5, as is customary in this art, includes a plurality oftwister bars l8; and as illustrated in Figure 5, the embodiment oftwister bar shown in the drawings includes twisters l9 of the slottedgear type. Each twister bar l8 includes opposed members 20 and 2|, themember 2! being a slotted plate overlying the recesses 23 and 24provided in the member 20 for accommodating the rack bar 26 and thetwisters [9, respectively. In the embodiment shown, machine screws 21secure the member 2| to the member 29 so as to enclose both the twistersl9 and the rack bar 26 between them.

The member 29 is extended beyond the member 2| and the twisters Hi toprovide guides 29. Inclined guide surfaces 36 thereon slope towards theslots 3| which extend through both the member 20 and the member 2!, andare adapted to hold the wires on the opposite sides of the twisters whenthe latter are rotated by the rack bar 26 to twist and unite the meshwires in the desired hexagonal pattern. Referring to Figure 4, it willbe noted that the outer edge of the member 2! is beveled to fit theundercut portion provided in the member 20, thus locking the two memberstogether when the screws 21 are drawn up tight.

The twisters IQ of one bar I 8 are arranged in staggered relation withrespect to the twisters both of the preceding bar N3 of the drum l5 andalso the succeeding bar [8. Accordingly, the guides 29 are in staggeredrelation; and when the wires first engage these guides 29 (at the pointmarked A in Figure 2) each wire engages alternate guide surfaces 30 onsuccessive guides 29. Accordingly, in moving down the throats into theslots 3|, the wire is deflected toward one end of the machine on therespective guide surface 30 of one bar l8 and toward the other end ofthe machine on the respective guide surface of the succeeding bar I8.This brings about a zig-zag pattern of the wires ready for the twistingof wires in the same slot 3| to produce the hexagonal mesh which isdesired.

In order to push the wires down along the inclined guide surfaces 30 ofthe throats and into the slots 3!, I provide positioning means indicatedin general by B. Brackets 35 are mounted on the main frame of themachine and secured in adjusted position by bolts 36. These bolts arereceived within slots, and when loosened permit the brackets 35 to beadjusted toward or away from the main drum 15 by means of the adjustmentscrews 38. Such adjustment increases or decreases the amount of slackbetween twister bars. as will be explained more in detail in connectionwith Figure 4.

The preferred embodiment of positioning means is shown in the drawingsand includes endless carriers 45 of the caterpillar type spaced alongthe machine. These endless carriers comprise links which travel aboutpairs of sprockets 42 fixed to a pair of shafts 43. These shafts 43 aredriven by gears 44 secured thereto which are driven by gears 45 meshingtherewith. The gears 45 are carried by a shaft 46 which is mounted inbearings in the brackets 35, the shafts 43 being mounted in bearings inthe same brackets. The shaft 45 also revolves in an adjustable bearing4'! (see Figure 3) which is slidable toward and from the main drum l5 ina slotted mounting 49 on the main frame. The position of the bearing 41in the slotted mounting 49 is fixed by the adjusting screw 50; so thatas the brackets 35 are adjusted inwardly and outwardly, the bearing 4'!may be adjusted relative to the main frame so as to provide a backing orsupport on the main frame for the driven end of the shaft 46. The pitchlines only of the gears 44 and 45 are shown in Figure 3. On the end ofthe shaft 46 thus backed or supported is a sprocket 48 driven from thesprocket "5 on the main shaft by the chain l2. A takeup roller (notshown) cooperates with the chain l2 to take up any slack therein.

Each link of each endless carrier 40 is secured to or is integral with awire engaging element 53 extending lengthwise of the rows of twisters.In the preferred embodiment shown herein, these wire engaging elementstake the form of angle bars having a base flange connected to the linksof the endless carriers and the other flange extending from the carriersto engage the wires and push them along the guide surfaces 3!! into theslots 3| (thus forming the hexagonal pattern) and depress the portionsof the wires intermediate the rows into loops of slack between thetwisters l9.

Referring to Figure 4, the wire shown entering the machine at the bottomof the figure has already slid down an inclined guide surface 30 of thelowermost bar 18 of the figure and is about main frame of the machine.

to be pushed by the corresponding lowermost element 53 down the slot 3|.In order to follow the same wire through a number of rows of the maindrum Hi, the section is not taken all in the same plane, but zig-zagsfrom a twister in one row to a staggered twister in the next row. Itshould be borne in mind therefore that the wire extends diagonally fromthe lowermost bar l8 to the bar next above, and so on around the drum.

Following along the wire, it will be noted that it has been depressedinto the bottom of the slot of the second bar l8; and the second element53 has started to depress the portion of the wire on beyond the secondbar. The third and fourth elements 53 have formed full loops for slackbetween the adjacent twisters l9; and the fifth element has started tomove out from interengagement between adjacent twister bars l8; whilethe last element 53 has withdrawn completely from contact with the wire.Here, I call attention to a further important feature of my invention,namely, the tim ng of the twisting to come just as the elements 53 arewithdrawn, so as to twist the wires while the slack is available. Thisfeature will be discussed more in detail in connection with theoperation of the twister bars themselves.

It will be noted at this point, however, that by means of the screws 38and 50, the positioning means B may be moved in or out relative to themain drum i5, thus bringing about interengagement between the bars l8and the elements 53 to a greater or less extent. Greaterinterengagement, of course, brings about further depression of theintermediate portions of the wires to give more slack, and vice versa.In order that the elements 53 may move into and out of interengagementwith the bars I8, the front and rear of the extremities of the bars l8,and particularly of the guides 29, are tapered so that there is nointerference due to such interengagement.

The main drum l5 is carried by the shaft I4 which is mounted in bearings55 and 56 in the A motor 5'! is connected by a belt drive 58 to a wormgear speed reducer 59, and by a belt drive 60 to the drive connections6| for the takeup 62. The connections to the takeup include a frictionclutch 63, so that as the diameter of the bundle on the takeupincreases, slippage in the friction clutch takes care of the resultingslowing down in the rate of angular rotation of the bundle. Theapproximate maximum size of bundle is indicated in chain lines in Figure2. A pinion 64 in mesh with a gear 65 on the main shaft M of the machineextends laterally from the speed reducer 59 and is driven through thesame from the motor 51. The main shaft, as above mentioned, carries asprocket l6 which drives the sprocket chain I2.

The twister bars I8 are secured on the periphery of the drum IS in suchrelation that, as above pointed out, the twisters l9 are in staggeredrelation. If desired, intermediate line Wires may be incorporated in thefabric, and such intermediate wires are fed into the machine inalinement with the slots 3| and with slots cut through the centers ofthe guides 29. These line wires have a straight path through themachine, as is clear from the arrangement shown in Figure 1. The twisterbar shown in detail in Figure 5 omits the slots in the guides 29, and isfor use where no intermediate line wires are to be incorporated.

The rack bars 26 mesh with the slotted gear type twisters l9, and arecam operated so as to impart a plurality of complete revolutions to thetwisters so as to give the twist to the mesh wires in forming thefabric. The twisters herein are slotted gears, the slot in the gearregistering with the slot 3! when the wires are being pushed down intothese slots at A. After the plurality of complete revolutions abovereferred to, the rack bars 26 retain the twisters in such position thatthe slots in the gears register with the slots 3| until the wire fabricleaves the drum 16 at the point C. The wire fabric then passes beneaththe guide roll 66 to the take-up 62.

The cams for operating the rack bars 26 are at the opposite ends of thedrum. The stationary tracks 68 and 69 are mounted on pedestals l0 andEl, respectively, secured to the main frame of the machine; and witheach of these tracks cooperate opposed cam plates l2 and '13. The rackbars are provided each with an actuating element M, alternate elements(actuating alternate rack bars) being at one end of the machine andcooperating with the same track 68, and the remaining elements It beingat the other end of the machine and cooperating with the cam track 6Q.Each element l4; carries on a stud a cam roller (not shown) which isconfined between the cam plates 12 and 13 so as to follow the respectivecam track and reciprocate the rack bar to which it is connected. Theactuating elements 14 are reciprocable within housings having coverplates secured in place by screws it. Each actuating element M isconnected to the respective end of its rack bar by an adjustableconnection I! similar in function toa turnbuckle. The cam tracks 88 and59 are so shaped as to reciprocate each rack bar 2% after the wirefabric has left the drum at the point C and before the wires are pusheddown the guide surfaces 30 into the slots 3! upon being fed in at thepoint A.

The relation of the cam tracks (58 and 69 to the positioning means B isan important feature of my invention. If the rack bars 26 arereciprocated before the elements 53 start to move out of interngagement, the twisters I!) start to twist the mesh wires before thenecessary slack is released for this purpose. On the other hand, thewires must not be released by the elements 53 too soon, or the slackwill be lost by backward creep of the wires through the twister barstoward the place where the elements 53 are contacting with the enteringwires and forming the loops or depressed portions. I have found itimportant to relate the cam tracks 68 and 69 to the positioning means Bso that the twist is formed in the mesh wires as the slack betweentwisters is released by the elements 53. In this way I prevent abackward creep, and make sure that the slack is available for the twist.

I have found that a simple way of mounting the twisters iii in therecesses 24 is to machine these recesses with a boss 18 coaxial with therecess 24. The hub of the twister gear I 9 is provided in one face withan opening corresponding in size to the boss '53 for receiving thelatter so as to be journaled thereon. This constitutes a simple mountingfor the twister gear I!) on the member 23 within the recess 24 by whatis in effect an integral stud 18.

A fabricating machine organized in accordance with my teaching has theadvantage that the wires are laid in the slots of the twister barswithout requiring the operation of a separate distributor. The guidesurfaces in cooperation with the positioning means bring aboutautomatically the distribution of the wires into the desired zigzagpattern. The elements of the positioning means interengage with thetwister bars so as to force the wires into the bottoms of the slots.Moreover, the wires are depressed sufiiciently so as to produce a loopof slack between twister bars. This slack is taken up in the twisting ofthe mesh wires, and wear on the machine incidental to creeping of thewires through the machine to the point where the twist takes place issubstantially eliminated. Moreover, my invention has the importantadvantage that it minimizes the danger of excessive tension on the wireswhen being twisted to form the wire fabric.

A further important feature of my invention is the proper timing of thereciprocation of the rack bars to bring about twisting as thepositioning means move out of interengagement with the twister bars andrelease the loops. My inventlon, therefore, has the advantage that thewires are under control so that the slack is employed for the desiredpurpose.

While I have illustrated and described one embodiment of my invention,which embodiment is the one I at present prefer, it will be understoodthat the invention may be otherwise embodied or practiced within thescope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a wire fabric making machine of the type wherein the mesh wiresare given a substantially zig-zag pattern for twisting into hexagonalmesh, the combination of twisting devices arranged in transverse rows,and means for positioning the mesh wires in said devices and fordepressing the portions of the wires intermediate the rows into loops ofslack between the twisting devices.

2. In a wire fabric making machine of the type wherein the mesh wiresare brought together and twisted to form hexagonal mesh, the combinationof twisting devices arranged in transverse rows, means for positioningthe mesh wires in said twisting devices so as to provide loops of slackbetween the twisting devices and for thereafter releasing the wires, andmeans operating in timed relation with said first-mentioned means forrotating the twisting devices as the mesh wires are released by saidfirst-mentioned means.

3. In a wire fabric making machine, the combination of twisters of thesloted gear type arranged in transverse rows, guides having surfaces forguiding mesh wires into the slots of said twisters, and wire engagingelements extending lengthwise of the rows for pushing the wires alongsaid guide surfaces into the slots of said twisters and for depressingthe portions of the wires intermediate the rows so as to provide slackbetween the twisters.

4. In a wire fabric making machine, the combination of twisters of theslotted gear type arranged in transverse rows with the twisters instaggered relationship, guides having inclined surfaces for guiding meshwires into the slots of said twisters in a zig-zag pattern, wireengaging elements extending lengthwise of the rows for pushing the wiresalong said guide surfaces into the slots of said twisters and fordeflecting the portions of the wires intermediate the rows into loops ofslack between the twisters, and means for adjusting said elements tovary the amount of slack provided thereby.

5. In a wire fabric making machine, the combination of twisters of theslotted gear type arranged in transverse rows, guides having surfacesfor guiding mesh wires into the slots of said twisters, wire engagingelements extending lengthwise of the rows and operable in cooperationwith said guide surfaces to position the wires in said twisters, saidelements being operable to deflect the portions of the wiresintermediate the rows into loops of slack between the twisters and tothereafter release the wires, and means operating in timed relation withsaid elements for rotating the twisters as the wires are released bysaid elements.

6. In a wire fabric making machine, in combination, twisters of theslotted gear type arranged in transverse rows with the twisters instaggered relationship, guides having inclined surfaces for guiding meshwires into the slots of said twisters in a zig-zag pattern, wireengaging elements extending lengthwise of the rows operable to push thewires along said guiding surfaces into the slots of said twisters and todepress the portions of the wires intermediate the rows into loops ofslack between the twisters, said elements being thereafter operable torelease the wires, means for adjusting said elements to vary the amountof slack in said loops, and actuating means operating in timed relationwith said elements for rotating the twisters as said elements releasethe wires.

'7. In a wire fabric making machine of the type wherein the mesh wiresare given a substantially zig-zag pattern for twisting into hexagonalmesh, in combination, twisting devices arranged in transverse rows, acapstan cooperating with bights or turns of mesh wires for frictionallyfeeding said wires to said twisting devices, and means for positioningthe mesh wires in said twisting devices.

8. In a wire fabric making machine of the type wherein the mesh wiresare given a substantially zig-zag pattern for twisting into hexagonalmesh, the combination of twisting devices arranged in transverse rows,means frictionally engaging the mesh wires for feeding said wires tosaid twisting devices, and means for positioning the mesh wires in saidtwisting devices and for deflecting the portions of the wiresintermediate the rows so as to provide slack between the twistingdevices.

9. In a wire fab 'ic making machine, the combination of twisters of theslotted gear type arranged in transverse rows, a capstan cooperatingwith bights or turns of mesh wires for frictionally feeding said wiresto said twisters, guides having surfaces for guiding the mesh wires intothe slots of said twisters, and wire engaging elements extendinglengthwise of the rows for pushing them along said guiding surfaces intothe slots of said twisters and for providing loops of slack between thetwisters.

10. The combination as defined in claim 9 in which the wire engagingelements are adjustable for varying the amount of slack in the loopsbetween the twisters.

11. In a wire fabric making machine of the type wherein the mesh wiresare given a substantially zig-zag pattern for twisting into hexagonalmesh, the combination of twisting devices arranged in transverse rows,guides having surfaces for guiding the mesh wires into said devices,wire engaging elements extending lengthwise of the rows for pushing thewires along said guide surfaces into the twisting devices and fordepressing the portions of the wires intermediate the rows so as toprovide slack between said devices, and means for adjusting said wireengaging elements to vary the amount of slack provided between saiddevices.

12. In a wire fabric making machine of the type wherein the mesh wiresare given a substantially zig-zag pattern for twisting into hexagonalmesh, the combination of twisting devices arranged in transverse rows,guides having surfaces for guiding the mesh wires into said devices, andmeans for pushing the mesh wires along said guide surfaces into saiddevices and for providing loops of slack between said devices comprisingendless carriers and wire engaging elements thereon extending lengthwiseof the rows and intermeshing therewith.

13. The combination defined in claim 12 in which the endless carriersare adjustable toward and from the twisting devices to vary the amountof slack provided between said devices.

14. In a wire fabric making machine of the type wherein the mesh wiresare given a substantially zig-zag pattern for twisting into hexagonalmesh, the combination of twisters of the slotted gear type arranged intransverse rows with the twisters in staggered relationship, meansfrictionally engaging the mesh wires for feeding said wires to saidtwisters, guides having surfaces for guiding the mesh wires into theslots of said twisters, and wire engaging elements extending lengthwiseof the rows for positioning said wires in said twisters and fordeflecting the portions of the wires intermediate the rows so as toprovide slack between the twisters.

CARL W. HOLMQUIST.

